The big secret regarding energy efficiency in co-ops and condos is window glass, which compared to insulated walls and ceilings, can be a source of serious energy waste. While we expect that energy-conserving walls and ceilings will dr…
Occupying the southernmost tip of Manhattan, New York City’s Financial District is the center of wealth and power for both the city and the nation, but until just a few years ago, the area was a ghost town after office hours. That began…
There have long been organizations that strive to strengthen and clarify the roles of owners, residents, and managers within the cooperative housing environment. But one essential player in the game—the superintendent—was the last to fi…
Last summer’s heat wave is just a fading memory, and it's that time again: time to get your building’s boiler operating and ready for the colder months. Before the first snow falls however, some maintenance and housekeeping to your buil…
You may have a roof over your head—but if that roof isn’t doing its job, you may as well be living on the cold, wet streets of New York City. Roofs serve as the first line of defense against whatever the skies throw at your bu…
“...We gather here today at the human resources department of Acme Property Management Company to bring together John Smith, property manager, with the building and board located at 123 Anywhere Street. If nobody objects to this arrang…
Eventually, most co-op owners will get bored with their surroundings and want to spruce up their apartment. Sometimes this will involve a full remodeling or redesign of the unit, while other times it simply means adding a new coat of p…
As residential buildings and the business of managing them have become more sophisticated, the term “super”—as in superintendent—has come to mean “super-qualified.” The days of the building handyman armed with little other than a ring of…
It’s hard—if not impossible—to plan a budget for your building and stick to it if maintenance problems and structural crises are constantly taking you by surprise and depleting your community’s bank account. Capital budgets are the long…
Not for nothing is New York City often called “the concrete jungle.” Thousands of square miles of pavement of all descriptions cover the city, from newly-poured (and quickly graffiti'ed) cement sidewalks to cobblestones left over from t…